Saturday, August 31, 2019

Mask Analysis

Lucy Grealy’s Masks Analysis In the story â€Å"Masks† Lucy Grealy is battling a lethal form of cancer but her struggle through the story is her self-confidence concerning her looks. As Lucy is growing up, the teasing and her self-consciousness about her physical appearance keep increasing. People’s physical beauty is somewhat important to how they see themselves because it affects their confidence. Sometimes when people are nicely dressed, do their hairs or makeup, they feel more confident about themselves than they do if they didn’t.In our culture we almost see a lack of physical beauty or a physical deformity as a disability that prevents you from being like other people. We allow our confidence and self-esteem influence our abilities. The more confidence a person has the less limitation they put on themselves. A person with a physical disability or deformity might feel less free or confident about themselves because how society might perceive them. For example, the first time Lucy is wearing her mask when she is celebrating Halloween she says, â€Å"I felt such freedom: I waltzed up to people effortlessly and boldly. When she wore the mask for the first time she realized how self-conscious she was about her appearance and how that affected her confidence. Some people would probably feel the same way Lucy did if they had faced what Lucy had through her life. Although she was a brave and strong person for fighting her disease, the thing that affected her confidence the most was her looks. Our culture judges a book by its cover. People usually will judge other people by their physical appearance when they first meet someone.That first impression is how we think a person is whether it been smart, successful, confident, or the opposite. People make it so important to be looked as â€Å"normal† that they will behave and look a certain way just to be perceived as normal by the people around them. A person’s physical appea rance will also influence the way people interact with each other. We see with Lucy the way her harassment about her looks influences her. When the teasing comes from a smaller group when Lucy was younger she would retaliate by retorting things back at the boys bothering her.As Lucy got to junior high and the group was larger and she knew less people, she became more isolated. Lucy stated that when she was teased in the hallways of the schools she would â€Å"simply looked down at the floor and walked more quickly. † The teasing got to such a point that she would completely isolate herself during lunch by eating with her guidance counselor. As she got older she, â€Å"viewed other people both critically and sympathetically. She tried to figure out why people would act the way they did with her and in general, as a way to cope with her situation. Some people have the attitude that they are better than someone with a physical deformity or physical disability because they donâ €™t look â€Å"normal,† which they almost see as a handicap. It would help in our culture to break that perception by knowing more stories like Lucy’s in which you can see how strong a person you have to be to have gone through the struggles she had.

Friday, August 30, 2019

The legalization of drugs

Legalization of DrugsThe argument over the legalisation of drugs continues to upset society as clip progresses. All of us have in some manner or another, straight or indirectly, been affected by drugs, whether it be from a household member or the economic load on society. Morton. M. Kondracke, writer of the essay â€Å" Do n't Legalize Drugs, † begins by saying â€Å" the following clip you hear that a rummy driver had slammed into a school coach full of kids or that a hopped-up railway applied scientist killed 16 people in a train wreck, think about this: if advocators of legalisation have their manner, there will be more of this † ( Kondracke, 358 ) . Supporters of legalisation, on the other manus, frequently look towards the fiscal benefits and insist that drugs, peculiarly marihuana, be legalized and taxed ; hence, the authorities makes gross, and helps towards the economic system financially. Gore Vidal, protagonist of legalisation and writer of the essay â€Å" D rugs, † states that all drugs should be made available and sold at a cost ( Vidal, 355 ) . All of this may be true and helpful in a sense for a short piece, but looking towards the long tally many other facets besides need to be put into consideration. Aspects include additions in dependence rates, offense rates, every bit good as drug maltreatment. America is a consumer civilization which frequently abuses its freedoms. Knowing this important fact a decision can be reached that it excessively would mistreat drugs ensuing in lay waste toing outcomes. There is no a manner to halt drug usage realistically for there are those few that choose to disobey the jurisprudence, nevertheless it can be enforced, and legalising it is non the best option. If prohibited and enforced most people would fear the effects and would believe twice earlier utilizing an illegal substance. While the legalisation of drugs may sound reasonable and have some positive consequences, they are merely imperma nent and overall it is unlogical and merely leads to more corruptness, go forthing a negative impact on the American civilization. Today we live in a civilization where due to drugs, offenses and dependence rates have escalated. Drugs are related to offenses in assorted ways. It can be considered a offense to utilize, possess, industry, or administer drugs classified as holding a possible for maltreatment ( such as cocaine, diacetylmorphine, marihuana, and pep pills ) . Drugs are besides related to offense through the effects they have on a user ‘s behaviour and by bring forthing force and other illegal activity in connexion with drug trafficking ( Spiess, n.pag. ) . Persons who produce, sell, traffic, or utilize illegal drugs have already established themselves as people who will interrupt the jurisprudence, and are likely perpetrating other felonies, such as robbery, colza, and slaying. If such persons are in prison because of these felonies, they are non able to travel out and perpetrate other offenses ; nevertheless, if they are set free due to the legalisation of drugs who knows the result that would ensue. At a lower limit, they are at least off the streets, unable to bring more mayhem. Statisticss have shown that offense rates in states that have legalized drugs, such as Great Britain, the Netherlands, and Switzerland have skyrocketed. Switzerland, ended their experiment with decriminalisation after sing an unacceptable addition in usage, force, offense, wellness costs, and effects. Leting a metropolis park to be used as a â€Å" drug legalized † country of Zurich, the figure of nuts escalated from a few hundred to over 20,000 within several old ages ( Cohen, n.pag. ) . Take a minute and believe about this ; that was merely a park, conceive of the effects on a whole state. America is already known for its offense and drug rates. Imagine the effects of legalising drugs and what that would ensue in. Aboard offense rates, dependence rates for teens and grownups have shot up every bit good. Drugs can be closely related and compared to coffin nails and intoxicant for they have all resulted likewise in negative effects that have impacted the universe greatly. As Kondracke discusses in his statement towards drugs, 10 to fifteen per centum of all drinkers turn into alkies ( 10-17 million ) , bing the economic system an estimated $ 117 billion dollars. Similarly, harmonizing to Dr. David I. McDonald, Ronald Reagan ‘s drug maltreatment policy adviser, surveies indicate that marihuana is every bit addictive as intoxicant. They conclude that 6 million people will go potheads and 8.5 million will go coke nuts ( Kondracke, 360 ) . These are merely estimations, but the consequences could be much greater. When British doctors were allowed to order diacetylmorphine to certain nuts, the figure skyrocketed from 68 British nuts in the plan to an estimated 20,000 diacetylmorphine users in Lo ndon entirely ( Walters, A10 ) . We have already seen the affects and maltreatments of intoxicant and coffin nails from a day-to-day point of view than why would we promote or even think about adding and legalising any other substances. In a manner the point of drugs is to acquire a â€Å" high † or some kind of poisoning. Unlike intoxicant, which may take a piece to kick in or acquire a bombilation, marihuana and other substances are about instant. â€Å" Of the 115 million Americans who consume intoxicant, 85 per centum seldom become intoxicated ; with drugs, poisoning is the whole ideal † ( Kondracke, 359 ) . Based entirely from basic cognition one can without uncertainty recognize why legalisation of drugs would be an irrational action. Drug maltreatment plays a major function as a portion of this argument every bit good. Peoples take drugs, in comparing to alcohol, to certain extents ensuing in serious conditions to even deceases. Aside from illegal drugs, people are besides mistreating prescribed drugs every bit good, such as cold and cough medicines to trouble stand-ins. â€Å" Drug maltreatment entirely costs an estimated $ 55 billion in 1998 ( excepting condemnable justness costs ) , and deceases straight related to drug usage have more than doubled since 1980 † ( Walters, A10 ) . Though medicative drugs are made for a good cause they still are abused and have side effects that can ensue in a assortment of issues. Medical marihuana, for illustration, has documented possible side effects including insomnia, depression, facial tics and scrawny growing ( Katherine, 39A ) . â€Å" In 2006, 2.1 million teens abused prescription drugs † ( Alcohol and Drug Use, n.pag. ) . If teens are mistreating legal p rescribed drugs at this age conceive of what they would make if illegal drugs were legalized. To give present twenty-four hours examples we can take celebrated figures such as Michael Jackson, Heath Ledger, and Anna Nicole Smith who are merely a few illustrations of persons who have been involved with drug maltreatment ensuing in their deceases. â€Å" Michael Jackson ‘s flooring inadvertent decease in June was merely the latest in a twine of high-profile human deaths from the maltreatment of multiple prescription medicines. Actor Heath Ledger and the theoretical account and sex symbol Anna Nicole Smith died late in comparable fortunes â€Å" ( Clemmit, n.pag. ) . The above mentioned illustrations are merely a few of many to come if drugs are legalized. Supporters of legalisation have certain fortunes in which they argue can ensue in a positive impact if drugs were legalized and experience that drug issues originate due to the fact of them being illegal. These fortunes include legalising marihuana to do it a societal drug, and in bend would assist in profiting the authorities financially. Besides, legalisation would take to a lessening in offenses. So far this twelvemonth, about 4000 people have died in Mexico ‘s drug war – a horrifying toll. Most of the jobs stem non from drugs themselves, but from the fact that they are illegal. The obvious reply, so, is to do them legal ( Wilson, 32 ) . Supporters agree that if drugs are made legal like intoxicant and coffin nails society will accommodate and turn boring of it, seting it aside. It will be common and there wo n't be much ballyhoo about it. Harmonizing to Vidal, as stated before, all drugs should be made legal and sold at a cost ( Vidal, 355 ) . A huge sum of money is raised through authorities revenue enhancement from intoxicant and coffin nails. Supporters feel that the legalisation of drugs, chiefly marihuana, would make another point that could be taxed and can be good financially to the authorities. â€Å" Tax foreman Betty T. Yee, president of the State Board of Equalization, backs the program and says it could bring forth one-year revenue enhancement grosss of $ 1.4 billion. â€Å" I think the tide is get downing to turn in footings of marihuana being portion of the mainstream † ( Katel, 19 ) . They believe this can be a scheme to assist raise economic growing financially. As for the offenses, protagonists agree that since the drugs would be allowed, there would non be any issues of robbery or battles since the drug trusts would be ran out of concern. They argue that prohibition of drugs is what causes those offenses. â€Å" Prohibition as a policy has failed. Just expression at the US, where 100s of 1000s of people have been jail ed and, despite one million millions of lbs of support for Draconian policies, higher pureness drugs continue to deluge the market † ( Chand, n.pag. ) . These averments are valid to a certain extent, but overall fail and lead to more issues. In resistance to the averments made above, it can be argued that none of those fortunes would ensue in a positive impact. Marijuana would non go a societal drug, for the fact being that it would be adapted by many people. In add-on, though revenue enhancements could be charged, there would be other costs aside of it, and offenses would still go on to gyrate up. Marijuana would non go a societal drug because though many may acquire tired of it, the newer and newer coevalss would accommodate it and go on it as a tendency. Besides before it could melt off, there would be another drug. In add-on, to compare it with coffin nails and intoxicant, both of those are still alive and good abused today, so what ‘s the opportunity that marihuana would differ. The Indiana University Prevention Resource Center youth drug usage study shows pupils use intoxicant and other drugs more often and at younger ages. For the 3rd consecutive twelvemonth, marihuana usage increased among all pupils in classs 6-12 and in all steps of prevalence -lifetime, one-year, monthly and day-to-day usage ( Drug, intoxicant usage increases among Indiana pupils, 8 ) . Now imagine, that is merely one school out of 1000s across the US. Harder and harder drugs are being abused more earnestly as the ages addition and the consequences are lay waste toing. Prior research based on representative samples drawn from the general population suggests that people tend to follow a common developmental tract from usage of intoxicant as young persons through possible usage of marihuana as teens potentially taking to utilize of more serious substances as grownups ( Golub, 607 ) . As for the costs, they excessively would decidedly lift due to a necessity of new intervention installati ons and clinics. If legalising drugs save $ 30 billion now being spent on jurisprudence enforcement and offense, a doubling of usage and maltreatment agencies that other costs would lift to $ 140 billion or $ 210 billion † ( Kondracke, 360 ) . The money would come out of our pockets for the authorities would non be able to fund and supply for all of the installations and who knows how worse the economic system could acquire. Furthermore, while the legalisation of drugs may diminish offense rates in some countries, it will increase offense rates in others. Traffic misdemeanors and accidents are likely to increase. Besides, many people are incarcerated due to a offense that they have committed while intoxicated, so how will the legalisation of these substances assistance in anyone ‘s good behaviour? Legalization could ensue in an addition in offenses because the trusts would be idle and looking for retaliation. Aside from the trusts, many people while drunk may drive, or commit felonies that may ensue in hurts, or deceases which excessively are considered offenses. A recent illustration in July affecting a adult female intoxicated and under the influence killed eight including her girl and three nieces due to the fact that she had smoked marijuana right before driving. The toxicology trials revealed that Schuler had twice the legal bound of intoxicant in her blood watercourse and had smoked marihuana s shortly before the accident ( Tresniowski, 80 ) . These are merely a few of many illustrations of what legalisation of drugs could ensue in and go forthing a negative impact on America. While the legalisation of drugs may sound reasonable, it is full of mistakes which may greatly impact the society and those around it. Drug issues continue to promote and spread out, and legalising drugs will no farther consequence in a benefit. Legalizing drugs can take to an addition in dependence rates, offense rates, and maltreatment. These issues will go on and should be farther enforced. The argument on whether or non drugs should be legalized is everlasting, but this can be changed. Statistics every bit good as mundane illustrations have proven the affects drugs have on a society, than why farther promote them. Enforcing drugs and forbiding them will assist maintain a balance between those who have already been affected and those unaffected.Plants Citedâ€Å" Alcohol & A ; Drug Use. † CDC Online. 23 Mar. 2009. 11 Oct. 2009..Chand, Kailash â€Å" Should drugs be decriminalized? YES. ( Cover narrative ) . † BMJ: British Medical Journal 10 Nov. 2007: 966. Academic S earch Premier. EBSCO. Web. 13 Oct. 2009.Clemmitt, Marcia. â€Å" Medication Abuse. † CQ Researcher 19.35 ( 2009 ) : 837-860. CQ Researcher. Web. 13 Oct. 2009..Cohen, Roger. â€Å" Amid Turning Crime, Zurich Closes A Park It Reserved for Drug Addicts. † NY Times. 11 Feb. 1992: 10A. Web. 12 Oct. 2009.â€Å" Drug, intoxicant usage increases among Indiana pupils. † Nation ‘s Health 25.9 ( 1995 ) : 8. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 13 Oct. 2009.Golub, Andrew, and Bruce D. Johnson â€Å" The switching importance of intoxicant and marihuana as gateway substances among serious drug maltreaters. † Journal of Studies on Alcohol 55.5 ( 1994 ) : 607. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 13 Oct. 2009.Katel, Peter. â€Å" Legalizing Marijuana. † CQ Researcher 19.22 ( 2009 ) : 525-548. CQ Researcher. Web. 13 Oct. 2009..Katherine, Ellison â€Å" Medical Marijuana: No Longer Just for Adults. † New York Times 22 Nov. 2009: 39A. Academic Search Pre mier. EBSCO. Web. 23 Nov. 2009.Kondracke, Morton M. â€Å" Do n't Legalize Drugs † . Readings for Writers ( 13th Edition ) . Ed. Jo Ray McCuen-Metherell and Anthony C.Winkler. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2010. 358-362Spiess, Michele and Deborah Fallow. â€Å" Drug-Related Crime. † Mar. 2000. White House Drug Policy. 11 Oct. 2009.Tresniowski, Alex, et Al. â€Å" FAMILIES DESTROYED. † Peoples 72.8 ( 2009 ) : 80-84. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 13 Oct. 2009.Vidal, Gore. â€Å" Drugs † . Readings for Writers ( 13th Edition ) . Ed. Jo Ray McCuen-Metherell and Anthony C.Winkler. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2010. 355-356.Bruno walters, John P. â€Å" Do n't Legalize Drugs. â€Å" Wall Street Journal. 19Jul.2002, Eastern edition: ABI/INFORM Global, ProQuest. n.pag. Web. 13 Oct. 2009Wilson, Clare â€Å" Legalise drugs. ( Cover narrative ) . † New Scientist 203.2725 ( 2009 ) : 32-33. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 23 Nov. 2009.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Business Cycle in Theory

The business cycle is a nonrepeating cycle of expansion from commercial activity to economic recession, which shows various upward trends. As part of the business cycle, the recession starts as the investment increases, and the economic recession expands as investment increases. From 1929 to 1933, GDP declined by 30% and the economy entered the Great Depression which continued until the Second World War. There have been ten recessions since 1945. To some extent, the 1990s like the 1920s included rapid economic growth and unprecedented prosperity (). From a conceptual point of view, linking innovation-based growth to business cycle theory is not new. The history of this idea can be traced back to at least Schumpeter (1934). Aghion and Howitt (1991) reviewed several attempts to unify growth and business cycle. Implementation cycle theory of Shleifer (1986) is an example of the conceptual relationship between (endogenous) business cycle and innovation-based growth theory. Cycle of repea ted innovation in enterprises due to externality of demand. Because we are looking forward to prosperity, prosperity will be self-fulfilling. However, to our knowledge, this is the first study to integrate diversity-based endogenous growth base and elements of the RBC method (note the attention to exogenous total productivity as the only uncertain factor Including). Because many people believe that there is an economic cycle, the economic cycle theory is important. This is not a permanent belief. In the 19th century, the economic cycle was not regarded as an economic cycle at all, but it was regarded as a spell of crisis that hampers the steady development of the economy. In the next few years economists and non economists began to believe in the regularity of these crises and analyzed how they relate to the segregated and changing economic structure. In society, it is said that history is constantly repeated. This is a business cycle that repeats the cycle that has been going on fo r many years, from the economic downturn to recovery and expansion. It will never end, it will not stop repeating Business Cycle in Theory The business cycle is a nonrepeating cycle of expansion from commercial activity to economic recession, which shows various upward trends. As part of the business cycle, the recession starts as the investment increases, and the economic recession expands as investment increases. From 1929 to 1933, GDP declined by 30% and the economy entered the Great Depression which continued until the Second World War. There have been ten recessions since 1945. To some extent, the 1990s like the 1920s included rapid economic growth and unprecedented prosperity (). From a conceptual point of view, linking innovation-based growth to business cycle theory is not new. The history of this idea can be traced back to at least Schumpeter (1934). Aghion and Howitt (1991) reviewed several attempts to unify growth and business cycle. Implementation cycle theory of Shleifer (1986) is an example of the conceptual relationship between (endogenous) business cycle and innovation-based growth theory. Cycle of repea ted innovation in enterprises due to externality of demand. Because we are looking forward to prosperity, prosperity will be self-fulfilling. However, to our knowledge, this is the first study to integrate diversity-based endogenous growth base and elements of the RBC method (note the attention to exogenous total productivity as the only uncertain factor Including). Because many people believe that there is an economic cycle, the economic cycle theory is important. This is not a permanent belief. In the 19th century, the economic cycle was not regarded as an economic cycle at all, but it was regarded as a spell of crisis that hampers the steady development of the economy. In the next few years economists and non economists began to believe in the regularity of these crises and analyzed how they relate to the segregated and changing economic structure. In society, it is said that history is constantly repeated. This is a business cycle that repeats the cycle that has been going on fo r many years, from the economic downturn to recovery and expansion. It will never end, it will not stop repeating

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Rhetorical Analyses Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Rhetorical Analyses - Essay Example To provide a balanced discourse, Featherstone eventually evaluated magazines such as Blue Jean, Teen Voices, Hues and Reluctant Hero that were certified to provide more substantial contents. The rhetorical analysis hereby aims to evaluate Featherstone’s effectiveness in evaluating the magazines using appeals to ethos, logos, and pathos. The author’s arguments clearly indicated her preferences for the teen girls’ reading materials through provision of examples and citing relevant support from identified slogans, celebrities, and choice of feature articles that were believed to evoke the readers’ emotional response. For example, Featherstone’s assessment of Teen People’s strategies of using celebrities such as Jennifer Love Hewitt by focusing on the actress’ clothes and love life, instead of providing positive information, aim to make readers realize the lack of credible and substantial content that could improve knowledge of girls on mo re crucial matters. Her choices of vocabularies, though, swerve from easy to read to confusing and almost defying logical order – which is contrary to using appeals to pathos.

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Persuasive Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Persuasive Memo - Essay Example Some companies may opt to lay off some of the workers in order to evade providing their health cover. There is also a high probability that employers will incur additional costs for their employees’ insurance. This may arise because insurance companies have to cover everybody including the sick. They may therefore increase the general insurance costs for health cover, in order to cater for the high risk of loss. Our company, therefore, needs to create well-thought strategies to meet the mandates of this Act and retain the much needed part-time workers, while concurrently ensuring  that  they dont bear  unneeded  costs. For instance, the company can offer a fixed amount of money to employees, to cater for specific drugs or procedures. This amount is a form of incentive that prompts the employees to look for the best price when making any purchases. Additionally, since the company needs the part-time workers, offering minimal coverage would help to retain them, and even improve their productivity. Moreover, the company should implement the disciplinary acts that the Act allows for such as surcharges to smokers, to avoid incurring avoidable

Monday, August 26, 2019

Explain the principle behind the concept of ''General Average''. What Assignment - 1

Explain the principle behind the concept of ''General Average''. What are the essential elements of the 'York-Antwerp Rules' that define a 'General Average' act - Assignment Example ther hand, Average when applied to maritime commerce, means, a payment made by all the persons involved in a sea adventure, to make good an identifiable loss or expense incurred by one or more of them for the general benefit (Stevens, 1835: 4). The law of general average is an accepted form of spreading the risk of sea transport that existed before marine insurance. It rests on the principle that loss or expenditures incurred in a maritime venture for the benefit of all should be shared ratably by all who participate in the venture. Heimer (1989: 123), states that general average means â€Å"general loss.† It stipulates that if a ship was in any peril and shipment was jettisoned to rescue the ship, then the ship and residual shipment were obligated to make a payment to the owner of the lost shipment. According to Hopkins (1859: 6), general average means a contribution according to value made by the associated interests which form a marine adventure, these parties being the ship itself, the merchandise she carries and the freight she earns.Baughen (2009: 325), defines general average as a right of contribution as between the various interests in a sea voyage: the ship; the cargo owners; and the party entitled to freight. It is imposed throughout the world as part of the law of the sea. It is a form of mutual insurance that developed before the emergence of marine insurance. According to Tudor (1868: 102), general average refers to all loss which arise in consequence of extraordinary expennses incurred in the presevation of the ship and cargo. That is, all the expenses incured from the misadventure, till all the cargo had been discharged, confessedly constituted. In order to give rise to a charge as general average, it is imporatant that there should be a voluntary sacrifice to preserve more subjects than one exposed to a common jeopardy. The purpose of this contribution is the repayment of some expense incurred or the restitution of something valuable sacrificed

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Gender Theory Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Gender Theory Paper - Essay Example Cultural Approach The cultural approach to gender development is based on the culture of a particular society. Culture comprises the idiosyncratic beliefs, traditions and value systems that are inherent to a particular society. Culture influences gender development through societal expectations about traits and manners appropriate to either male or female members of a particular social order, thereby defining gender roles in day to day life (Appelbaum et al. 2003). Critical Approach The critical approach to gender development is based on the standpoint and the queer performative theories that are focused on societal structures and practices that lead to stratification of people in to groups that possess different privileges unique to each group. For example, men in most cases are accorded the dominant group over women and also enjoy greater privileges in matters of leadership and socio-economic engagements of the society. Critical theorists postulate that the dominant groups advance their interests and viewpoints and impose them on the minority. On the other hand, the subjugated groups become empowered when they realize their plight and fight to overturn the prevailing circumstances so that their viewpoint is accorded consideration (Beck et al. 2006). Biological Theory The biological theory is based on the premise that gender development and differences arise as a result of biological processes that determine how the brain of an individual works. The theory attributes differences in characteristics between men and women to the variance in the functioning of the brain caused by chromosomal and hormonal differences. Women possess two x chromosomes while men possess an x and y chromosome. On the other hand, sex chromosomes in men and women are produced in varying quantities thereby causing the behavioral differences (Perrin, 2003). The biological approach is valid with regards to male and female hormones. Andrea & Moretti (2009) argue that men and women exhibit di fferent characteristics based on their hormonal and chromosomal differences. Androgens are the male sex hormones that lead to the development of male characteristics and in adulthood, males tend to behave more aggressively than their female counterparts with estrogen and progesterone. High level of oxytocin in women is associated with sociability and emotions (Arnold, 2011). It is therefore generally expected that women exhibit greater reaction emotionally to traumatizing experiences than men. This highlights the reason why women are regarded as weak in terms of withstanding stress. The sex hormones exhibit different physical characteristics in men and women whereby men develop strong muscle and are able to undertake vigorous exercises compared to women who possess a tender physical structure. Further more, the hormonal activity in women especially with regards to menstrual cycle and pregnancy leads to irregular mood swings that are typical of the female gender (Andrea & Moretti, 20 09). Interpersonal Approach The interpersonal approach to gender development is based on interpersonal factors that contribute to the development of masculine or feminine characteristics. This approach can be explained through the psychodynamic theory that focuses on childhood development within a family that accentuates interpersonal bonds thereby affecting a child’s sense of identity. It can also be explicated through the

World Civilizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

World Civilizations - Essay Example As time flies by, African regions have been establishing contacts with other countries not only with Europe but also with other countries like the US, which aided notable developments in its society. However, the level of development and change still varies among these African regions. For example, the East African region has little improvement when it comes to its economy. Note that this region has been suffering from malnutrition, starvation due to food shortage and some illnesses which had badly been spreading widely across the region for almost 6 decades now (East Africa Crisis). Steps have been taken to get all the help from across countries. Many articles have already been published both in web pages and print. Call for donations and sponsorships have also gone live on-air and via new, but it seems that relief organizations are still having a hard time finding enough funds to overcome this problem. East Africa has been asking assistance from the US both for raising fund and conducting campaigns to raise awareness of the region’s situation. However, improvement is still at its littlest. Meanwhile, West Africa in majority is still suffering from poverty, drought, nutritional challenges and difficulty in earning money. But increasingly studies are showing that â€Å"sociocultural aspects are playing an increasingly important role† in the development of business in this region (Long, 2011). Reports have been made that China is trying to build business ties with countries located in this region. There are also reports of continuous efforts to connect West African business centers and universities to the rest of the world. Among the three regions, it appears that South Africa, labeled as the most developed region in Africa, has been the most changed by the foreign contact with culture and technology. According to Connor Septhon’s report, South Africa has a noticeably better infrastructure among these other regions.

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Critically discuss why a clinical trial protocol is essential in Essay

Critically discuss why a clinical trial protocol is essential in clinical trials - Essay Example Therefore, clinical trial protocols are crucial tools that contribute to efficiency in clinical trials. One argument that supports clinical trial protocols is that it allows for quality of service within the area of clinical practice. Since clinical trial protocols are expertly prepared, they provide guidance on how tests should be conducted. Additionally, protocols provide safety precautions details that help professional from suffering from any damages (Chow & Liu, 2014). For instance, a person testing a dangerous gas is required to have a mask and safety goggles to ensure that they do not come to any harm. Therefore, such protocols eliminate negligence which could as much as life of patients or staff. Lack of standard protocols would lead to subjectivity as various staffs use different approaches to conduct trial (Wang & Bakhai, 2006). On this ground, protocols are quality and safety assurance tools that cannot be neglected within clinical professional practice. Secondly, a standard trial protocol simplifies the work of researchers especially when trial is long and requires a collaborative approach. Since the protocols are well arrange from one stage to the next, it is possible for different groups in a multi-center to pick various sections of the trial and implement them independently (Bradburn et al., 2010). This makes work easier without introducing errors within the trial. Since each group works on particular portions, it is clear that their results can be well combined with those of other centers to come up with a conclusive trial. This is something that would rather be difficult if there was not standard procedure for conducting clinical trials. However, the opponent of clinical trial protocols note that trials are subject to the opinions of the person conduction them, and hence protocols do not assure that there is quality. Reading the results is subject to a person’s view, which may vary

Friday, August 23, 2019

Independent audit and detect fraud Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Independent audit and detect fraud - Essay Example All the financial statements will be made in such a way that no statements will show any kind of inconsistency. In order to avoid frauds in a company, the internal control is of pronounced importance; otherwise no independent auditing firm or company will be able to track the frauds taking place inside any company. The internal control system is designed to keep track of the daily transactions of the company. The internal control systems not only contribute to checking the mathematical accuracy but also play part in rectifying the sources of data i.e. reporting systems (Trenerry, 1999). The audit company and controlling system hierarchical leadership will also ensure that they put absolutely honest and hardworking auditors on the job otherwise many a times it happens that the auditors make internal deals with the employees of the addressed company and all the fraud tracking process comes to no

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Two sides to welfare Essay Example for Free

Two sides to welfare Essay In this discussion we were suppose to side with either the Conservative side or the Moderate side. The Conservative side had points about the welfare which best described my opinion about welfare. One the other hand the moderate view also had several points to the welfare reform. The welfare issue in the U.S. can not be handled in a similar way for everyone. There are certain cases and situations which show that welfare shouldnt be handled in the same way for everyone. Their should be different procedures for extreme cases, and their should be some sort of restriction too. The government should provide some sort of aid because every state has different procedures of determining welfare. The time restriction in one way is very useful for the society in a whole but again it should be determined by the eligibility. For example, if someone is severely disabled, that person wont be helped enough if the time limit is just five year. So, I believe there should be longer time given to the people who deserved it. The thing about any government sector aid can be done in this way that the government watches over the states, so they dont pass a law that doesnt belong to welfare at all. I agree with the conservative view on welfare more than the moderate view. There are several reasons behind my opinion. Although, I agree that the needy families, single parents, and other in need should be helped financially, but I few issues regarding this. First of all, there should exist a tough procedure and valuation in order to get the welfare. The welfare shouldnt be available as the first thing to anyone who is in need and he/she has dependents. Instead, they should check out other opportunities before getting themselves into welfare. Although these people should be given welfare but should have some sort of penalty along with it. The welfare should be given to most extreme cases. Especially the single parents should be asked to make contributions to their budget as in a part-time job. I believe it is not fair to the tax payer who are working Twenty four hours and paying money for someone who is having couple of kids  as a single parenting while they are not able to support themselves. There should be some sort of pressure in order for single parenting population to receive this aid. A lot of people have created the welfare as their income source; this thing can only be stoped by having them work too, even if they are only working part-time. There should be no support available to the people who have child and they dont show interest in getting independent in future or do some sort of part-time job. For their children we should provide either adoption or some sort of centers which only look after their kids (provide them with food and shelter, not their grown up parents too). Welfare should go to the elderly and the disable people, because they are the people who really deserve the welfare. But still there comes the point of how did this person got disabled. Did it occur naturally or accidentally? If this happened naturally or accidentally it is a situation with is beyond the individuals control. But if, this person has became disabled because of drug abuses; I certainly wont agree that this person should be fed by government through out his/her life. This way at least we might be able to stop people from abusing themselves. Because these people know that they are getting all sorts of financial help they dont care about themselves and become a burden on the society. To reduce this sort of behavior among people some new reforms should be done to the welfare. Beyond the individuals are factors in the economy or society itself that may prevent people from getting a job that can support a family. Some groups suffer from discrimination that blocks them out of the better-paying, career jobs. Sometimes a persons skills are no longer needed in the system. In these cases we can at least help them by welfare for limited time.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

How to can you contribute your good governance practice and leadership for the devolopment of your country Essay Example for Free

How to can you contribute your good governance practice and leadership for the devolopment of your country Essay SkillLack of proper governance within public and private institutions reduces the chance of such institutions from achieving and sustaining effective administration. It becomes hard to achieve goals and objectives with lack of efficient service delivery. There is always a connection between good governance, effective leadership, and economic prosperity. This essay will elaborate how I can utilize my good governance and leadership skills for the development of our country. Competency is one of the important qualities of an effective leader. I will use competency to ensure all government policies are implemented with exceptional effectiveness. High level of service delivery will be a priority because it enhances the proper utilization of government’s resources. Accountability is another leadership skill that I will utilize effectively. This is through the acknowledgement and assumption of responsibility for all actions, policies, and decisions. Accountability will create trust and will ensure that procedures are carried out using the stated regulations and rules. Corruption will be outdated since I will be accountable for all activities. Transparency builds integrity, which helps an individual acquire strong internal guiding principles. Transparency means that I am dedicated to achieving the relevant targeted objectives. Through openness, there will be free flow of information among the public and me . This would enhance proper relationship with the public, as they will have access to the information they may need. Effective communication is another aspect that I will use. This will provide a platform where the access of information to everyone is easier. This includes sharing of ideas, receiving information and giving feedback to the public. Consequently, effective leadership and legitimate governance are the essential factors to a highly effective government. Using the above examples, I will help our government in providing satisfactory service delivery to the public and achieve the stated objectives and goals.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Continuous Hot Percolation Process Biology Essay

Continuous Hot Percolation Process Biology Essay The collected, cleaned and coarsely powdered of Clerodendrum phlomidis (Linn) was used for the extraction purposes. 1kg of powdered leaves was used. It was then extracted with various solvents from non polar to polar such as Petroleum ether, Chloroform, Ethyl acetate and Methanol. The solvents used were distilled before use. The extraction was carried out with various solvents by of hot soxhlet extraction for 72 Hrs. After each solvent extraction, the extracts were filtered through whattmann filter paper to remove any impurities is present. PREPARATION OF EXTRACTS a) Petroleum ether extract of leaves of Clerodendrum phlomidis (Linn). About 1kg of dry coarse powder was extracted first 5 liters of Petroleum ether (60-80 °C) in a hot soxhlet extraction using round bottomed flask for 72 Hrs. After completion of extraction the petroleum ether was filtered and concentrated to dry mass by vaccum distillation. A dark green colour residue (1.48 % w/w) was obtained. The extract was then stored in a desicator (Practical pharmacognosy. 1994). b) Chloroform extract of leaves of Clerodendrum phlomidis (Linn). The marc left after Petroleum ether extract, was dried and subsequently extracted with 4 liters of Chloroform (40-60 °C) in a hot soxhlet extraction using round bottomed flask for 72 Hrs. After completion of extraction, it was filtered and the solvent was removed by distillation under reduced pressure. A yellowish green colour residue (0.86 %w/w) was obtained .The extract was then stored in a desicator. c) Ethyl acetate extracts of leaves of Clerodendrum phlomidis (Linn). The marc left after Chloroform extract, was dried subsequently extracted with 3 liters of methanol (40-60 °C) in a hot soxhlet extraction using round bottomed flask for 72 Hrs. After completion of extraction, it was filtered and the solvent was removed by distillation under reduced pressure. A brown colour residue (0.63 %w/w) was obtained. The extract was then stored in a desicator. d) Methanol extracts of leaves of Clerodendrum phlomidis (Linn). The marc left after Ethyl acetate extract, was dried subsequently extracted with 2 liters of methanol (40-60 °C) in a hot soxhlet extraction using round bottomed flask for 72 Hrs. After completion of extraction, it was filtered and the solvent was removed by distillation under reduced pressure. A dark brown colour residue (8.24 %w/w) was obtained. The extract was then stored in a desicator. From the weight of the each extractive residue, the extractive values were calculated in percentage. All the above extracts were used for identification of constituents by phytochemical tests and for the pharmacological studies. The yields of various extract were shown in the Table No: 1. Table No.1 EXTRACTIVE VALUES OF THE LEAVES OF CLERODENDRUM PHLOMIDIS (LINN) S.No EXTRACTS YEILD (gms) % YIELD (w/w) 1 Petroleum ether 14.8 1.48 2 Chloroform 8.6 0.86 3 Ethyl acetate 6.3 0.63 4 Methanol 82.4 8.24 QUALITATIVE PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS Qualitative chemical tests were carried out for all the extracts of leaves of Clerodendrum phlomidis (Linn) to identify the various phytoconstituents. The various tests and reagents used are given below and observations are recorded. (Table No.2) Tests for carbohydrates: Molishs test: To 2-3 ml of extract, added few drops of ÃŽÂ ±-naphthol solution in alcohol, shaken and added concentrated H2SO4 form sides of the test tube was observed for violet ring at the junction of two liquids (Indian Pharmacopeia, vol II. 199). Fehlings test: 1 ml Fehlings A and Fehlings B solutions was mixed and boiled for one minute. Added equal volume of test solution. Heated in boiling water bath for 5-10 min was observed for a yellow, then brick red precipitate. Benedicts test: Equal volume of Benedicts reagent and test solution in test tube were mixed. Heated in boiling water bath for 5 min. Solution may appear green, yellow or red depending on amount of reducing sugar present in test solution Tests for Alkaloids Mayers test: To the 1 ml of extract, add 1 ml of Mayers reagent (Potassium mercuric iodide solution). Whitish yellow or cream colored precipitate indicates the presence of alkaloids. Dragendroffs test: To 1 ml of the extract, add 1 ml of Dragendroffs reagent (Potassium bismuth iodide solution). An orange-red precipitate indicates the presence of alkaloids. Hagers test: To 1 ml of the extract, add 1 ml of Hagers reagent (saturated aqueous solution of picric acid). A yellow colored precipitate indicates the presence of alkaloids. Wagners test: To 1 ml of the extract, add 1 ml of Wagners reagent (Iodine in potassium iodide solution). Formation of reddish brown precipitate indicates the presence of alkaloids. (Kokate C.K et.al, 2007). Tests for Glycosides Hydrolysis of extract: A minimum quantity of the extracts is hydrolyzed with hydrochloric acid for few minutes on water bath and the hydrolysate is subjected to the following tests.  ¡). Legals test: To the hydrolysate 1 ml pyridine and few drops of sodium nitropruside solution added, then it is made alkaline with sodium hydroxide solution. Color change shows the presence of glycosides.  ¡Ã‚ ¡). Borntragers test: Hydrolysate is treated with chloroform and the chloroform layer is separated. To this, equal quantity of dilute ammonia solution is added. Color changes in the ammonical layer shows the presence of glycosides. Bal jets test: A test solution observed for yellow to orange color with sodium picrate. Keller Killiani test: Dissolve the extract in acetic acid containing traces of ferric chloride and transfer to a test tube containing sulphuric acid. At the junction, formation of a reddish brown color, which gradually becomes blue, confirms the presence of glycoside. Tests for Phyto Steroids Small quantity of extract is dissolved in 5 ml of chloroform separately. The above obtained chloroform solutions are subjected to Salkowski and Liebermann Burchard tests (Harbone. JB. 1973). Salkowski test: To the 1 ml of above prepared chloroform solution few drops of concentrated sulphuric acid is added. Formation of brown ring indicates the presence of phytosterols. Liebermann Burchard test: The above prepared chloroform solutions are treated with few drops of concentrated sulphuric acid followed by 1 ml of acetic anhydride solution. A bluish green color solution shows the presence of phytosterols. Tests for Flavanoids Shinoda test: To dried powder or extract added 5 ml 95% ethanol, few drops concentrated HCl and 0.5 g magnesium turnings. Pink color was observed (Quality Control of Herbal Drugs. 2002). Ferric Chloride test: Test solution with few drops of ferric chloride solution shows intense green color. Alkaline reagent test: Test solution when treated with sodium hydroxide solution shows increase in the intensity of yellow color, which becomes colourless on addition of drops of dilute acid. Lead Acetate solution test: Test solution with few drops of lead acetate solution (10%) gives yellow precipitates. Test for terpenoids Dissolve 2 to 3 granules of tin metal in 2 ml of thionyl chloride solution. Then add 1 ml of the extract into the test tube. The formation of a pink color indicates the presence of terpenoids. 5 ml of aqueous extract of each plant sample is mixed with 2 ml of CHCl3 in a test tube. 3 ml of concentrated H2SO4 is carefully added to the mixture to form a layer. An interface with a reddish brown coloration is formed if terpenoids constituent is present. (Journal of Medicinal Plants Research Vol. 3(2), pp.068). Tests for Saponins Foam test: The extracts are diluted with 20ml of distilled water and then agitated in a graduated cylinder for 15minutes. Formation of foam layer indicates the presence of saponins. (Khandelwal K.R, 2007). Haemolytic test: Added test solution to one drop of blood placed on glass slide. Haemolytic zone whether appeared was observed. Tests for Proteins and Amino acids Biuret test: To 3 ml test solution added 4% NaOH and few drops of 1% CuSO4 solution observed for violet or pink color (Practical Pharmacognosy. 1996). Millions test: Mixed 3 ml test solution with 5 ml Millions reagent, white precipitate. Precipitate warmed turns brick red or precipitate dissolves giving red color was observed. Xanthoprotein test: Mixed 3 ml test solution with 1 ml concentrated H2SO4 observed for white precipitate. Ninhydrin test: 3 ml test solution and 3 drops 5% Ninhydrin solution were heated in boiling water bath for 10 min. observed for purple or bluish color Tests for Tannins and Phenolic compounds To 2 3 ml of extract, add few drops of following reagents: 5% FeCl3 solution: deep blue black color. Lead acetate solution: white precipitate. Gelatin solution: white precipitate. Bromine water: decoloration of bromine water. Acetic acid solution: red color solution. Dilute iodine solution: transient red color. Dilute HNO3: reddish to yellow color. Test for Fixed Oils and Fats Spot test: Small quantity of the extract is placed between two filter papers. Oil stain produced with any extract shows the presence of fixed oils and fats in the extracts. Saponification test: Few drops of 0.5N alcoholic potassium hydroxide are added to the extract with few drops of phenolphthalein solution. Later the mixture is heated on water bath for 1 2 hours soap formation indicates the presence of fixed oils and fats in the extracts. Test for Gums and Mucilages Ruthenium red test: Small quantities of extract are diluted with water and added with ruthenium red solution. A pink color production shows the presence of gums and mucilages. TABLE NO: 2 QUALITATIVE PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF EXTRACTS OF LEAVES OF CLERODENDRUM PHLOMIDIS (LINN) TEST OF EXTRACTS PETROLEUM ETHER EXTRACTS CHLOROFORM EXTRACTS ETHYL ACETATE EXTRACTS METHANOL EXTRACTS CARBOHYDRATES _ _ + + ALKALOIDS _ _ + + GLYCOSIDES + + + + PHYTO STEROIDS + + + + FLAVONOIDS _ + + + TERPENOIDS + + + + SAPONIN _ + + + TANNINS PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS + + + + FIXED OILS FATS + _ + + GUMS MUCILAGES _ + + + PROTEINS AMINO ACIDS _ + + + (+ ) = indicates presence, (-) = indicates absence Based on qualitative analysis we have selected Ethyl acetate extract of clerodendrum phlomidis (Linn) leaves for further studies because Ethyl acetate extract is having more phytoconstituents when compared to all other extracts.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Decreasing Newspaper Readership -- Journalism Journalistic Essays

Decreasing Newspaper Readership Newspapers are nothing without readers: no argument here. â€Å"They are the reason we produce the paper in the first place,† Noah Bombard, editor of The Beacon in Acton, said. Many newspapers across the country have had yearly decreases in readership and circulation numbers for years. These decreases have added up causing newspaper editors to worry. â€Å"We’ve lost 5,000 subscribers in the last decade. That’s not unusual,† James H. Smith, executive editor, The Record-Journal in Meriden, Conn., said. Ten years ago, the Record-Journal’s subscribers totaled 30,000; today the paper has 25,000, Smith said. The bad news doesn’t seem to be ending for newspapers. Research conducted in the area of readership is only echoing what newspapers have known all along: newspapers are losing readers. â€Å"Nationwide newspaper circulation peaked in the 1970s,† David Solomon, editor of The Telegraph, Nashua, N.H, said. Studies conducted of American newspapers today show that readership is traveling down a continuously steady downward spiral. According to the recent â€Å"The State of the News Media 2005† report by the Project for Excellence in Journalism: â€Å"‘Newspaper circulation is in decline,’ the inaugural edition of this report declared a year ago†¦it's clear that things are worse than people thought.† The problem is newspapers can’t afford to lose readers because they are nothing without their readers. â€Å"Without readers, a paper would have no value, no audience, no purpose,† Solomon said. When newspapers lose readers they also lose advertising. Without advertising, newspapers lose their greatest source of income and papers have no way of paying the high costs of production. And without a product newspapers are not... ... of topics,† â€Å"The State of the News Media 2005† said. And not everyone is ditching the newspaper for the screen. There are still some readers who consider newspapers the only source for news. â€Å"There is evidence that more people are reading the newspaper at work or in settings like coffee shops and waiting rooms and that the demographic groups newspapers have a harder time reaching, like women and young people, are well represented among occasional readers of this kind,† â€Å"The State of the News Media 2005† said. â€Å"I’m not convinced people are reading on the Internet. Baby-boomers, I think, they’re the ones still reading the actual paper and they’re the majority. It’s just not an efficient way of reading the paper,† Van Wormer said. â€Å"They should research how a paper feels. It’s like fine bookkeeping. That will keep the newspaper above other media,† Van Wormer said.

Free Trade Agreement and Its Affect on Canadian Business Essay

Free Trade Agreement and Its Affect on Canadian Business With the coming of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) there have been very serious implications for Canadian business and for that matter, Canada as a whole. Many aspects of the previous economic climate have changed such as the reduction or eliminatation of tariffs and the restrictions on subsidies to name only a few. There has been much heated debate on the pros and cons of this deal: whether Canada will prosper or become the 51st. American state. This paper will not take this approach to the issue of whether or not it is a wise agreement, but will look at what business can do to better itself with the existing FTA. If Canadian business is to survive and prosper in this radically changed North American and Global atmosphere of easier trading, then it must adapt. Some of the main areas that will have to be addressed is the need for more productive and efficient operations, a new focus by business on the new trading reality, and a change in policies by Government to enable Canada to function better with the FTA. The FTA stands to alter Canadian business which has grown rather relaxed and inefficient behind walls of tarrifs. While these may have initially spurred industry, they have after time encouraged complacency. With these rapidly disappearing walls, business will have to become "lean and mean" in order to compete in a very competitive global market. Looking at the present state of affairs our status in research and development (R&D), labour costs and expansion, there is much that must be done. Compared to the other industrialized western nations we lag far behind in nearly all areas. Take for example R&D. In 1990 Canada spe... ... Cameron, Duncan. The Free Trade Papers. James Lorimor & Company, Publishers, Toronto, 1986 The Canada and US FTA (Complete Doccument), External affairs Canada, Ottawa Laxer, James. Leap of Faith: Free Rade and the Future of Canada. Hurtig Publishers, Edmonton, 1986 The Case Against the Critics of Free Trade. John Miora. Finanical Post, Feb. 8, 1986 Brave New World. Marc Tait. Maclean's, Jan. 9, 1989 Firms going continental. Jennifer Sachsa. Globe and Mail, June 12, 1990 Roundtable: The Canada-US FTA. Fred Swift. Globe and Mail. August 12, 1988 End Notes 1 Firms going continental. Jennifer Sachsa. Globe and Mail, June 12, 1990 2 Brave New World. Marc Tait. Maclean's, Jan. 9, 1989 3 Firms going continental. Jenniger Sachsa. Globe and Mail, June 12, 1990 4 Roundtable: The Canada-US FTA. Fred Swift. Globe and Mail. August 12, 1988

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Capital Punishment - The View of International and National Courts :: Argumentative Persuasive Topics

Capital Punishment and International and National Courts    Around the world we travel in this paper, which reviews the attitude of courts worldwide regarding the death penalty.    By way of international courts, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC), in a judgement which may have far-reaching consequences on death penalty cases in the English-speaking Caribbean, commuted the death sentences of six convicted prisoners in Jamaica on 12 September. The JCPC which serves as the final appeal court for English-speaking Caribbean countries such as Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and the Bahamas, ruled that it is unlawful to execute prisoners whose appeals are pending before international bodies such as the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights and the UN Human Rights Committee.    The JCPC also ruled that the Jamaican Privy Council (Mercy Committee) when considering whether to exercise the prerogative of mercy, must provide prisoners with an effective and adequate opportunity to participate in the mercy process, including notification of the date on which the Mercy Committee will consider the case and the opportunity to make informed representations to the Committee and to challenge any inaccurate information before it. This judgement overrules previous decisions of the JCPC and other Caribbean courts, including the 1996 decision from the Bahamas, in which the JCPC had held that a condemned prisoner had no rights before the Mercy Committee.    The International Court of Justice (ICJ) held public hearings in the LaGrand case (Germany v the USA) from 13 - 17 November in The Hague. For the first time in its history, the ICJ has been asked to determine what remedies are required under international law when arrested foreign nationals are not informed of their consular rights and are then sentenced to death.    German nationals Karl and Walter LaGrand were sentenced to death in Arizona, USA, for killing a bank manager during a robbery in 1982. Although the local authorities were aware of their nationality, the two brothers were arrested, tried and sentenced to death without being advised of their right to consular notification and assistance, as required under Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. Germany maintains that the treaty violation contributed to the death sentences by preventing consular assistance in the gathering of mitigating evidence for presentation at the sentencing stage of the trial. German consular officers only became aware of the case 10 years after the trial when they were contacted by the LaGrands, who had finally learned of their right to consular assistance, not from the Arizona authorities but from other prison inmates.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Shakespeare Midterm

There are many themes through Shakespeare’s plays, As You Like It, Merchant of Venice, and All’s Well that Ends Well. such as love, pride, irony, and marriage. All three plays are comedies because essentially the love that so alludes the protagonists in the beginning of the play somehow unites them toward the end of the play through either mis-identity, in the case of Roselind and Orlando in As You Like It or Helena and Bertram in All’s Well that Ends Well, albeit the latter’s love is a forced loved by the King (whom Helena’s physician father heals of fistula), as Bertram writes to Helena while he’s at war, â€Å"When thou canst get the ring upon my finger, which never shall come off, and show me a child begotten of thy body that I am father to, then call me husband† (Shakespeare III. i. 55-58). The purpose of this essay paper will be to explore these issues of love as they apply to the main characters and come to a revelation on the l ove between them and the progress of its destruction or affirmation through Shakespeare’s device of mis-identity – thus, identity and love will play a dual role in this essay along with high authorities such as royalty or fate. As You Like It As You Like It is one of Shakespeare’s comedies. The focus of the play revolves around the theme of love and identity – either the changing of the main character’s identities or their dramatic use of mis-identity to other main characters. The main protagonists, Rosalind and Orlando, fall in love, but due to circumstance (such as their identities and their fates as destined by higher authorities) are unable to unite until the end of the play. The play begins with Rosalind’s banishment into the forest of Arden (along with her friend Celia and a clown) and with Orlando’s own fleeing of his brother’s plot to murder him. Thus, the beginning of the play is in direct opposition to the close of the play: the beginning of the play is about banishment and betrayal and the end of the play is about unification through love; thus it is the theme of love that unites each of these three Shakespearean plays. To the characters in As You Like It, the most important, and powerful thing in life is love and through love the reader comes to understand the concept of fate. It is the power of love that drives Rosalind to dress up as a man in order to escape being detected as herself from royalty. While she is ‘Ganymede’ (a man) she approaches Orlando and has him practice wooing Rosalind with ‘him’, thus staying true to Shakespeare’s idea of mixing comedy with love and in the process revealing certain truths about the characters (such as their feelings for one another and their destiny with each other). Thus, the beginning of the main lover’s courtship is done through this misappropriation of identity by way of a royal idea of what love should be countered with Shakespeare’s idea of what love is as seen with the mounting feelings his protagonists have with each other. It seems that the message that Shakespeare is trying to convey with these two characters is that love flourishes under the most drastic of circumstances: Two lovers fleeing or banished from home and yet through disguise are still able to find true love. As Jacques states in As You Like It, All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven ages. (Shakespeare II. vii. 39-143). This passage’s intended meaning emphasizes love (although Shakespeare does poke fun at the intention of the play with this passage as well as Rosalind’s final speech or epilogue which requests the audience to enjoy the play at their disposal but not more than warrants undo attention). The end of the play sees Hyman the god of marriage (another pun in the play, making reference to virginity) unite Orlando and Rosalind, Oliver and Celia, Silvius and Phebe and even Touchstone and A udrey. Thus, while the beginning of the play has a start in banishment and gloom, the final act of the play is exalted in love, and in finding love, each character reveals their true identity thus suggesting to the reader that love can only come if a person is honest with themselves about who they are. Merchant of Venice The hero’s evil that is confronted in The Merchant of Venice, is that of Antonio’s (hero) to Shylock’s (the villain). This play is one of Shakespeare’s problem plays. The plot synopsis is that a young man, Bassanio wants to woe Portia but is unable to due so because of lack of funds (Hankey 431). He asks his friend Antonio for the money, and in turn, Antonio asks Shylock for a loan. The prejudice of the play is found in Antonio having spat on Shylock and called him a Jew; thus the tension for the play is set between the loan and these two principle characters. It is through Antonio’s own actions, as one can pull from the text, that his relationship with Shylock is doomed. The tension of the play is further doomed as Shylock’s daughter Jessica runs away to convert to Christianity in order to marry her lover Lorenzo; thus Shylock’s vengeance is twofold – one for getting his money back and the other for seeking vengeance from religion. Although the finer points of the play are dealing with vengeance and the scenes between Shylock and Antonio are very suspenseful, the point of the play is that love prevails despite the urgency of an opposing powerful force (thus keeping this play linked with the opposing royalty force as seen in As You Like It). Bassanio chooses the correct lead box in order to marry Portia according to her father’s will and thus, the point of the play where the suitor is involved is resolved. However, Bassanio still is entangled with the tension between Antonio and Shylock since it was for Bassanio that Antonio loaned money from Shylock. It is Antonio’s haste in agreeing to such a deal that the play is focused upon. This play is filled with smaller plot elements that add to the definition of this being a problem play. The turns which the play makes during the progression of the plot makes the play point towards being a tragedy, it is not until the end of the play that the theme of love can truly be applied: With Bassanio’s engagement and Antonio’s getting out of his deal with Shylock. Portia (in disguise as a man) asks Shylock to show mercy in her famous speech, â€Å"The quality of mercy is not strained—(Shakespeare IV,i,185), this plea comes to no avail however and Shylock is determined to extract his pound of flesh. In the end love reigns: as the court decides that since Shylock is unable to extract the flesh without shedding any blood, he must forfeit his property half to the government and half to Antonio. In a gesture of fairness, Antonio will have the principle amount given to Jessica and Lorenzo – thus, the theme of love wins at the end for Bassanio gets Portia and Jessica marries Lorenzo and Shylock. Thus, when Shylock’s daughter comes forward with her true feelings and her love, she gains power. Thus, the link between love and power and the revelation of love through true identity is found. Indeed the theme of love is found in plenty in The Merchant of Venice with the correlating couples. In a particularly romantic scene Lorenzo speaks of Jessica (Skylock’s daughter), Beshrew me but I love her heartily; For she is wise, if I can judge of her, And fair she is, if that mine eyes be true, And true she is, as she hath proved herself, And therefore, like herself, wise, fair and true, Shall she be placed in my constant soul. Shakespeare II, vi, 51-57. It is found in this play that Shylock is a naysayer when it comes to the subject of love; it would be prudent then to state that because of Shylock’s predisposition on the theme of love, his negative attitude about it, as revealed in the court case in the presence of the play’s caste of characters, â€Å"Some men there are love not a gaping pig, some that are mad if they behold a cat, and others when the bagpipe sings i' the nose cannot contain their urine. † (Shakespeare IIII, i, 47-50) that the end that Shylock meets with (having to convert to Christianity and losing his property) is in direct relation to his sentiments about love. The issue that Shakespeare presents them with the financial and religious demise of Shylock is that love conquers all. All’s Well that Ends Well The them of All’s Well that Ends Well is one that is definitely defined as love, albeit, a rather dishonest start to love. Bertram is made to marry Helena after her father cured the kind of an illness. Although Helena is very much in love with Bertram, as she reveals, â€Å"'T were all one, That I should love a bright particular star, And think to wed it, he is so above me. † (Shakespeare 1. 1. 98). Bertram seeks refuge in war and tells Helena that the marriage isn’t truly a marriage since they have not slept together and thus do not have any hopes of having children. Helena seeks to remedy this situation. This play, (as with the previous plays written about in this paper) exudes the cleverness of women dressing up as men in order to gain access to information or dressing up as women (as Helena does, dressing up as her maid Diana) in order to have power and information. Thus, Bertram is seduced by Helena/ Diana and made a proper husband of by his wife; in fact the play ends on Bertram’s lines, â€Å"†¦love her dearly, ever, ever dearly. (Shakespeare V. iii. 354) which are made in reference to Helena. This romantic view is littered throughout modern art – such as movies and music. The concepts to most adults of â€Å"adolescent suicide is horrifying and a little unreal†. (Hodgdon 342) To the eyes of fellow young lovers, this tale could be seen as the very definition of modern teen angst. There are obvious examples throughout the play as to why this label had been given, and remains used to this day. One way that a play may be seen as a tragedy, as Nevo wrote, is â€Å"by way of intrusive morality in the interpretation of the spectator†. Nevo 244) This means that, while the audience watches the play, it uses its own ideals of law, order, and society to judge the actions of its characters. The actions of Romeo are seen by the audience as falling against the contemporary ideals of right and wrong. Romeo is a character who longed for a chaste girl, accepted an invitation to a party under false pretences, allowed for his love of Rosaline to be completely forgotten at the sight of Juliet, and who, in a moment of extreme rage and wanton revenge, slays the cousin of his new bride (this rage is also seen in Othello’s character when he believes Desdemona is cheating on him). Thus, love reigns at the end of this play as well as it had in the end of As You Like It. Conclusion The themes of the plays have been made obvious: Love. Through the use of disguises, the women of the play are able to help themselves into positions of power through the gaining of information that would not be known to them without the ruse (as with Jessica disguising herself in order to persuade her father, Roselind in order for Orlando to woe her, and Helena in order to gain access to Bertram’s bed) (Kimbrough 30). The plays end, each in their own accord, on scenes of love and rejoicing for the characters who have found love (this means that since Shylock did not find love, he could not rejoice). Thus, love is the element of consistency in each play, and it is with love that the plays are able to progress from one scene to the next until the end of the play finds the main characters happy.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Chef Satisfaction Essay

The findings showed that employees’ job satisfaction directly and positively influences organizational commitment, but does not directly influence job performance. Employees’ job satisfaction enhances job performance only through organizational commitment. Internal marketing, empowerment and leadership also positively influence job satisfaction. Empowerment and leadership enhance employees’ organizational commitment. Internal job stress negatively influences employees’ job satisfaction and external job stress enhances employees’ job performance. According to the findings, this paper realized the main factors which influence hospitality industry employees’ job satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance, which can function as criteria for human resource management in the hospitality industry. Key words: Hospitality industry, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, job performance.   With the change of the industrial structure in recent years, the output value of the service industry has become more than 70% of the GDP in most advanced countries (CIA, 2009). Thus, the service industry plays a significant role in national economic development. In 2008, as the world encountered a financial tsunami, the governments of different countries selected potential service industries and supported them with resources, in order to energize economic development. The hospitality industry is a typical service industry, and it is critical service industry around the world. In Taiwan, the scale of the hospitality industry has been increasing year by year. According to the Statistics Department, Ministry of Economic Affairs, in 2001 the business volume of the hospitality industry in Taiwan was NTD 261. 3 billion. In 2006 it passed NTD 300 billion and in 2009 it reached NTD 321. 7 billion. However, the hospitality industry refers to labor services and relies on manpower in areas such as production, delivery and restaurant service. Thus, the hospitality industry is mainly based on services. As mentioned in Bitner’s (1995) framework of the service marketing triangle, service providers play a critical role in the service industries. In service industry management, regarding the importance of employees, Heskett et al. (1994) proposed the framework of service profit chain. In the service profit chain, there are critical linkages among internal service *Corresponding author. E-mail: cccheng@mail. tcmt. edu. tw. Tel: +886-2-28102292 ext. 5009. Fax: +886-2-2810-6688. Tsai et al. 4119 quality, employee satisfaction/productivity, the value of services provided to the customer, customer satisfaction and company’s profits. This chain shows that internal service quality can enhance employee satisfaction, which will enhance employee productivity and further result in external service value and enhanced customer satisfaction. Finally, the company can make a profit (Zeithaml et al. , 2009). Therefore, satisfied employees make satisfied customers. Service personnel satisfaction significantly influences organizational commitment and job performance on customer satisfaction and corporate operational performance (Ladkin, 2002; Dunlap et al. , 1988; Tansuhaj et al. , 1988; Chowdhary, 2003; Yang and Chen, 2010). How to enhance service personnel satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance is a critical issue in service industry management. In past research on employee satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance, many scholars (Babin and Boles, 1998; Bernhardt et al. 2000; Van Scotter, 2000; Koys, 2003; Testa, 2001) have validated that employees’ job satisfaction positively influences job performance and organizational commitment. In studies on factors of employees’ job satisfaction, job performance and organizational commitment, the service profit chain proposed by Heskett et al. (1994) and service marketing management model indica ted by Tansuhaj et al. (1988) on overall service industry both demonstrated that management’s internal marketing activities produce job satisfaction and commitment to the organization. In addition, many studies have found close relationships between leadership, employee satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance (Billingsley and Cross, 1992; Yammarino and Dubinsky, 1994; Burton et al. , 2002; Avolio et al. , 2004; Chen and Silverthorne, 2005). The above studies have mainly focused on the educational service industry, retail industry, manufacturing service industry, medical service industry and governmental institutions, but have not conducted indepth explorations on the hospitality service industry. Hopfl (1994) indicated that in the service delivery, firstline employees must be empowered to some degree in order to cope with customers’ special demands. Thus, job empowerment can be treated as important management to encourage first-line service personnel and immediately solve customers’ differential demands. Avolio et al. (2004), Caykoylu et al. (2007) and Chen et al. (2008) respectively conducted empirical studies on medical personnel and employees of the telecommunication industry, banking industry and postal industry, and found that empowerment positively influences employee satisfaction and organizational commitment. One issue worthy of further study is the extent of how empowerment positively influences hospitality industry employee satisfaction and organizational commitment. In addition, first-line employees face different customer demands and supervisor requirements, therefore job stress is a critical issue for them. Jamal (1990) and Jex (1998) suggested that reducing employees’ job stress could enhance employees’ job satisfaction and job performance. Williams and Cooper (2002) and Ouyang (2009) indicated that proper job stress would enhance employees’ job performance. In the hospitality industry, the influence of job stress from external customers and internal supervisors on employees’ job satisfaction and job performance is an issue worthy of further exploration. Based on the above, internal marketing, leadership, empowerment and job stress are possible factors of service industry employees’ job satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance, and these factors are validated in various service industries. However, the outcomes in different service industries are not the same. For the hospitality industry, it is important to validate and analyze the influences of the above factors on employees’ job satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance. Thus, this study intended to combine internal marketing, leadership, empowerment and job stress and proposed an integrated model of hospitality industry employees’ job satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance. Hospitality industry employees in Taipei City were treated as the subjects, and the researcher probed into factors of hospitality industry employees’ job satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance in order to function as criteria for management in the hospitality industry. LITERATURE REVIEW Job satisfaction The term â€Å"job satisfaction† was proposed by Hoppock (1935) who suggested that job satisfaction means employees’ emotions and attitude toward their jobs, and is their subjective reaction toward their jobs. The definition of job satisfaction is generalized into three categories: (1) Definition of generality: Job satisfaction refers to the affective reaction to one’s job as the most (Ozer and Gunluk, 2010). Job satisfaction, which is one of the most important necessities for an individual to be successful, happy and productive, is a feeling of satisfaction, that is, an outcome of the perception of what the job provides for an individual (Ay and Av aro lu, 2010); (2) Definition of difference: This refers to the degree of satisfaction and the difference between ndividual actual returns and required returns. For instance, Porter and Lawler (1968) suggested that the degree of satisfaction depends on the difference between a person’s actual returns and expected returns; (3) Definition of criterion framework: Peoples’ subjective perception and interpretation on objective traits of organizations or jobs would be influenced by individual criterion framework. According to Smith et al. (1969), job satisfaction is the outcome after a person interprets the job traits according 4120 Afr. J. Bus. Manage. o the criterion framework. The influence of certain work situations on job satisfaction is related to many factors, such as comparisons between good and bad jobs, comparisons with others, personal competency and past experience, etc. Job performance Kane and Lawler (1976) suggested that job performance refers to the record of the results when employees have practiced a job for a certain period of time. According to Schermerhorn (1989), job performance refers to the quality and quantity accomplished by individuals or groups after fulfilling a task. After a certain period of time, measurements of employees’ job performance could serve as criterion for promotions, wage adjustments, rewards, punishments and evaluations. Cascio (2006) suggested that managers must specifically define performance to allow the teams or employees to recognize the organizational expectations in order to fulfill the organizational goals. In other words, managers must set concrete goals, trace the fulfillment degree and evaluate the teams’ or employees’ performance. Van Scotter and Motowidlo (1996) suggested that employees with a high degree of job enthusiasm will demonstrate extra effort and devotion, and will actively seek out solutions to problems at work in order to enhance their job performance. Robbins (1998) divided the measurement of job performance into job result, job behavior and personal traits. Lee et al. (1999) divided job performance into efficiency, efficacy and quality. Efficiency refers to the employees’ output rate and is the ability to accomplish tasks before deadline. Efficacy refers to the employees’ goal accomplishment rate and proposals. Quality refers to the employees’ error rate and complaint rate, supervisor satisfaction, customer satisfaction and colleague satisfaction. This study suggested that in the application of this construct to measure hospitality industry employees’ job performance, efficiency should refer to the employees’ speed in customer service, efficacy should mean the accomplishment of tasks assigned by customers, and quality should mean the employees’ performance in customer service. As to measurement, Shore and Thornton (1986) indicated that self-evaluation allows individuals to participate in performance evaluation and serves as a criterion. Based on the above, according to the views of Lee et al. (1999), this study divided job performance into efficiency, efficacy and quality, and measured hospitality industry employees’ job performance using employee self-evaluation. Smith et al. (1969) proposed the Job Description Index (JDI) to measure job satisfaction, with the constructs including wage, promotion, job, supervisors and colleagues. Black and Gregersen (1997) found a positive correlation between job satisfaction and job performance. Organ (1990) suggested that when employees are satisfied with their work, they are willing to sacrifice themselves and devote to their organization. Organizational commitment From the perspective of attitude, Porter et al. (1974) indicated that organizational commitment is a person’s active and positive intention to identify with and internalize organizational goals and value. According to Reyes and Pounder (1990), organizational commitment is the strong belief and intention to identify with organizational value, devote to and stay with the organization. Mathews and Shepherd (2002) suggested that organizational commitment refers to workers’ attitude, behavior and connection between individuals and the organization. Guest (1995) indicated that organizational commitment is at the core of human resource management. It transforms traditional manpower management into the core of human resources. Organizational members’ attitude or intentions particularly indicate the importance of employees’ organizational commitment. Dee et al. (2006) suggested that organizational commitment is a person’s intention to devote to and be loyal to the organization. Lambert et al. (2006) suggested that organizational commitment is the structural phenomenon of trading between individuals and organizations. It increases with time, but it does not lead to a transferable investment outcome. Thus, in theoretical study and practical use, scholars have valued organizational commitment in human resource management. In recent years, many scholars have probed into organizational commitment from the view of Porter et al. (1974). Thus, this study also followed the above view and divided organizational commitment into value commitment, effort commitment and retention commitment. This study further treated these three constructs as criteria to measure hospitality industry employees’ organizational commitment. Definitions of these constructs are thus shown: (1) Value commitment: a strong belief and identification with organizational goals and values. 2) Effort commitment: the intention to devote more to the organization. (3) Retention commitment: a strong intention to continue being part of the organization. Internal marketing Internal Marketing (IM) is the process of handling staff as internal customers and projects as internal products that satisfy the needs and desires of the customers and adhere to the company’s goals (Berry and Parasuraman, 1991). Rafiq and Ahmed (1993) suggest that internal marketing involves â€Å"a planned effort to overcome organizational resistance to change and to align, motivate Tsai et al. 4121 nd integrate employees towards the effective implementation of corporate and functional strategies†. Joseph (1996) suggested that internal marketing is can be applied to marketing and human resource management, combining theoretical techniques and principles in order to encourage, recruit and manage all employees in the organization and constantly improve external customer service and mutual services. In addition, Ahmed et al. (2003) defined internal marketing as the emp loyees’ evaluation of the reward system, internal communication, training and development of the company. Internal marketing empirical research in the service sector has proven that internal marketing has influenced on internal customers (that is, employees) satisfactions. Berry and Parasuraman (1991) suggested that the advantages of internal marketing implementation in organizations are as follows: (1) To acquire and keep excellent talent; (2) to provide a common vision so that employees have job purpose and meaning; (3) to give employees the ability and knowledge to accomplish the work; (4) to encourage employees to share the results of teamwork; (5) to create job designs be based on the findings of marketing studies. The aforementioned views reveal that corporate implementation of internal marketing allows employees to enhance service quality, which increases the production and profits of the companies. The implementation of internal marketing in the organizations results in an internal service culture, raises service consciousness and increases profits (Parasuraman et al. , 1985). Based on the views of these scholars, internal marketing is critical for organizations and influences external marketing to further enhance customer satisfaction. According to the these definitions and based on the views of Rafiq and Ahmed (1993) and Ahmed et al. (2003), this study treated employee evaluations of reward systems, internal communication, and training and development of companies as criterion for measuring internal marketing of the hospitality industry. Leadership Leadership refers the process of influencing the team to accomplish the goals (Robbins and Coulter, 2005). Leaders are key success factors of an organization (Bass, 1985; Daft, 2002). Skillful leaders recognize and use the interpersonal relationships of the team and strengthen the members’ loyalty and morale. Effective leaders must learn skills such as patiently sharing information, trusting others and recognizing the timing of interventions (Steckler and Fondas, 1995). In recent years, numerous scholars have tried to discuss leadership from new perspectives. New studies of leadership theory have particularly stressed the influences of demands between leaders and subordinates, the interaction of personality traits and situational factors on leadership (Bargal and Schmid, 1989). Corporate leaders must select a proper leadership according to their subordinates’ different demands for supervision, in order to enhance employee satisfaction and fulfill expected goals. Bass and Avolio (1997) divided leadership into transformational leadership and transactional leadership. In transformational leadership, subordinates trust, respect and are loyal to their leaders. Leaders can develop their subordinates’ potential and enhance their confidence by changing their values and beliefs in order to increase their organizational commitment, intention and motivation to create exceptional outcomes. Transformational leadership can be divided into ideal traits, ideal behavior, the encouragement of inspiration, and the stimulation of wisdom and individual care. In addition, transactional leadership means leaders and members remain in the process of negotiation and mutual benefit instead of a persistent one-purpose relationship. Social exchange theory is treated as the theoretical base. When subordinates act according to their leaders’ expectations, they will have returns with a specific value. Transactional leadership can be divided into contingent rewards, and active and passive exceptional management. Most quantitative studies on leadership have created questionnaires using the MLQ scale designed by Bass and Avolio (1997). The MLQ scale includes two constructs (transformational leadership and transactional leadership). This study also designed a leadership questionnaire for the hospitality industry according to the MLQ scale. Empowerment Empowerment signals a transition away from traditional development that confined people’s role to that of passive recipients, effectively rendering them dependent on handouts in the form of foreign aid (O’Gorman, 1995). Bowen and Lawler III (1992) define empowerment as sharing with frontline employees four organizational ingredients: (1) Information about the organization’s performance; (2) rewards based on the organization’s performance; (3) knowledge about contributing to organizational performance; (4) power to make decisions that influence organizational direction and performance. Murat and Thomas (2003) suggested that empowerment does not simply refer to telling employees that they are empowered, but aims to allow the employees to recognize what power has been authorized. Boudrias et al. (2004) suggested that in managerial circles, empowerment application includes two types: (1) Empowering the responsibility of decision-making to subordinates while emphasizing rich work environments 4122 Afr. J. Bus. Manage. and diverse authority, information, resources and support, and providing the opportunity to learn in order to improve performance; (2) psychological empowerment, which refers to employees’ experiences of empowerment that are inferred as a mediating variable of empowerment and expected results. According to Sherman (1996), empowerment acknowledges that employees have the power to change in order to encourage employees to increase their competency. Kanter (1993) suggested that empowerment can keep employees from feeling helpless. Organizations could thus reduce negative effects such as low morale. The most significant effect of empowerment is to enhance employees’ abilities and self-efficacy (Conger and Kanungo, 1988). Bowen and Lawler III (1992) suggested the advantages of empowerment for organizations below: (1) To rapidly respond to customer demands and questions; (2) a high degree of employees’ job satisfaction; (3) positive interactions with consumers; (4) employees with creative thoughts; (5) the creation of loyal customers. About the definition of psychological empowerment, Spreitzer (1995) defines this concept as the psychological state that employees must experience for managerial empowerment interventions to be successful.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Fred Stern & Company, Inc.

Fred Stern & Company, Inc. was a rubber importer based out of New York City during the 1920s. This capital-intensive business was in high demand for numerous industries at the time. As such, Fred Stern & Co. relied heavily on lenders to finance its daily operations. In 1924, Fred Stern & Co. approached a finance company named Ultramares Corporation for a loan of $100,000. Before accepting the terms, Ultramares Corp. requested an audited balance sheet to serve as support for the loan.A well-respected accounting firm named Touche, Niven & Co.  had provided assurance for their statement a few months earlier, which allowed the deal to go through. The following year, in January 1925, Fred Stern & Co. filed for bankruptcy and Ultramares Corporation found itself suing Touche, Niven & Co. for fraud & negligence to recover $165,000 lost in the agreement. When reviewing the case thoroughly, there are various red flags, overlooked by Touche Niven that should have been clear indicators of frau dulent reporting by Fred Stern Co. Firstly, when commencing the audit in February, Touches’ auditor Siess had to complete the general ledger & trial balance himself.It had not been posted since the prior April. This resulted in him reviewing some of his own work. Following this event, Stern’s accountant booked an additional entry debiting receivables and crediting sales in the amount of $700,000, more than doubling the accounts receivables account. As an explanation, he claimed that the entry represented December sales omitted from the accounting records. Additionally, while auditing inventory, Touches’ auditor discovered several errors, which caused the inventory record to be overstated by more than $300,000, an overstatement of 90%.Also, while auditing payables, more errors appeared and the auditor discovered that the company had improperly pledged the same assets as collateral for several bank loans. We should also consider the absence of a strong regulatory system at the time as well as the old acquaintance and good relationship between the firm and the client as red flags, which may have led the auditing firm to under-evaluate the risks of the audit. This case led to a long legal battle between the defendant Touche Niven & Co. , and the plaintiff Ultramares Corporation.In the first ruling, the jury found the audit to be negligent but not fraudulent; however, the judge set this finding aside based on the doctrine of privity, which protects auditors from third party suits. Essentially, this ruling states that in common law, only parties of the contract or relationship in place should be allowed to sue and claim damages. Other parties that used the information in the audit report to make decisions did not have an explicit contractual agreement with the auditors. Therefore, a third party could not sue the auditor for damages if the audit report was misleading and caused the third party to lose money.The SEC of 1933 did not hold auditors l egally responsible to these third parties. As we can see, auditing rules have changed quite substantially from the 1920s to today. Following this ruling, the plaintiff appealed the ruling where an intermediate appellate court reinstated the negligence verdict stating that by offering an unqualified report, Touche Niven & Co. had an obligation to Ultramares since they relied on this information to base their decision of lending money to Fred Stern & Co. Finally, Touche Niven appealed the ruling which as a result brought the case to the New York Court of Appeals where a final decision was established.In a unanimous decision, the court, led by Judge Benjamin Cardozo ruled the defendant not guilty based on the same conclusion from the first ruling. He stated that the law should not admit â€Å"to a liability in an indeterminate amount for an indeterminate time to an indeterminate class. † He believed that Touche, Niven was not guilty to third parties because its relationship was with Fred Stern & Co. period. It is important to mention that judge Cardozo went on to criticize the accounting firm for its audit of the Fred Stern Co.financials and that had they sued on basis of gross negligence, they would have been successful. Distinction being the fact that blindly giving assent is as bad as committing fraud. To reiterate, the difference between negligence (which they sued for) itself and gross negligence is in fact a relationship that exist between the parties in dealing. This case established that an auditor could be sued by a primary beneficiary for damages from negligence. A primary beneficiary is a party that has a direct benefit from the audit.Non-privity parties could also sue for gross negligence. This increased the auditor’s legal exposure to third parties. The SEC of 1934 reflected these changes and many others; one significant change was that auditor’s had a much higher litigation risk due to their new responsibility to third parties. The audit report in the 1920’s was very basic. The audit report was titled the â€Å"Certificate of Auditors† and said that the auditors had examined only the balance sheet accounts and these accounts were in line with the explanations and information given to the auditors.It then said that the statement presented a true and correct view of the financial condition of the company. This is very different from the audit report used today. Today, the audit report is much more detailed to help auditors avoid liability. Instead of simply examining the balance sheet, now we audited the balance sheet, income statement, statement of retained earnings and cash flows. Beyond just simply stating that the accounts are in line with the explanations and information received, auditors state that we conduct the audit in line with Generally Accepted Auditing Standards and explain what this means.In the 1920’s, where the audit report would have said that the statements present a t rue and correct view of the financial condition of the company, the report now state that the statements present fairly, in all material respects the financial position of the company, and that the operations and cash flows are in line with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Many changes in the auditing profession have required these changes to avoid confusion from financial statement users.The decision of extending the liability of auditors to third parties had impacts on all parties involved in an audit (accounting firms, audit clients and third-party financial statement users). The question of whether the auditors are responsible for â€Å"socializing investment losses† became important. â€Å"Socializing investment losses and privatizing profits† can be defined as † how businesses and individuals can successfully benefit from any and all profits related to their line of business, but avoid losses by having those losses paid for by society.Privatizing p rofits and socializing losses suggests that when large losses occur for speculators or businesses, they are able to successfully lobby government for aide rather than face the consequences of said losses. â€Å"1 In other words, when losses are occurred by the investors or creditors of an audit client, the auditors would be as liable to them as the audit client itself to compensate for the losses occurred due to misrepresentations on the financial statements or in case of fraud. This is basically what extending the liability of auditors did.The changes in the SEC of 1934 and the new laws that arrived after that, forced certain changes to the way the auditors had to approach their work. It is now their responsibility to ensure that the work being done is enough to provide a high level of assurance to all the users of financial statements. This means ensuring that they do their due diligence, in case that there is misrepresentations in the financial statements audited or fraud and th at they are being sued for gross negligence. The auditors would have to prove that they did the work necessary to provide that high level of assurance.The auditors would also have to be more careful when choosing their audit clients as they cannot chose anyone they are already doing consulting for (remain independent). However, the fact that the consulting firms and auditing firms are now separate for the same client eliminates the â€Å"lowballing† of audit fees. The change to the liability of auditors also impacted the audit clients because they are no longer the only one responsible in case of misrepresentations if the financial statements. However, since the auditing firms no longer â€Å"lowball† their fees, the clients will now have to pay more for the same audit.The change also impacted the third-party financial statement users. They now have more peace of mind when it comes to the information they are reading since they know the auditors know that they have to keep them in mind when doing their audit. This fact is enforced by the idea that the third-parties now have insurance from the auditors that if any misrepresentations occur in the financial statements that incurred losses for the investors or creditors of the audit client, they can now recover some (or all) of it by suing the auditors for gross negligence.The decision of extending the liability of auditors to third-parties was made by courts. This brought up the question: Who should have the authority to chose who should socialize the investment losses? Since the accounting profession is supposed to be self-governing, this question is valid. The Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) is the association responsible of their members when they break the code of conduct in Canada. It hands penalties to the members but also sets guidelines as to what is ethically expected of them. However, they do not have the authority to serve as a court because they are not considered impa rtial.An argument can be made to say that the government should protect the investments. The government can do such a thing by developing laws that will help the courts make their decisions. An example of the government making a law to help determine who is responsible in case of fraud would be Bill C198 (the equivalent of Sarbanes-Oxley for Canada). Since it is the courts' duty to â€Å"uphold the rule of law (†¦) and enforce laws in a fair and rational manner†2, it is their responsibilities as impartial party to determine who is responsible for the losses occurred in cases of fraud.When conducting an audit, auditors must ensure always ensure that any and all information influencing third party user’s decisions is included in the financial statements and/or attached notes. To ensure this, the auditor must determine these users. Knowing and understanding the third party users will inform the auditor of management’s desired results and will therefore enable the auditor to conduct the audit more efficiently.For example, a company who is looking to secure new loans will want to minimize the current debt on their balance sheet as well as show a high working capital ratio to ensure their creditors will loan them the desired financing. Contrary to this example would be companies entering the stock market. With the launch of an IPO, companies want to show profitable results as well as increasing growth to ensure a high stock price. This is especially true for companies whose loans are secured by their stock (i. e. Enron with its stock trigger).This stage of the audit planning must be completed/updated every year since management’s goals may vary from year to year. The auditor will then use management’s biases to organize the audit. More experienced auditors will work on the â€Å"riskier† accounts, whereas newer employees will work on the â€Å"less risky† accounts; thus explaining why the junior accountant will b e responsible for auditing the cash section while the senior auditor might work on deferred revenues for a company receiving all of its revenues through exterior funding.Knowing and understanding the third parties’ needs will ensure a more efficient audit. However, even with all improvements made to the accounting world, cases like these still happen today. In a recent case involving a very reputable accounting firm, Ernst & Young, audited fraudulent financial statements of Sino-Forest made their way to the public. Evidently, this led to many losses, specifically for Sino-Forest’s shareholders who investment decision was based on the company’s financial statements.During their audit, Ernst & Young failed to discover that management â€Å"materially overstated the size and value of its forestry assets†. 3 Ernst & Young had to pay a $117M settlement of a shareholder class-action lawsuit. 4 Due to cases like these, changes are continuingly made to auditing s tandards to adopt when new issues surface. The case brought up a possible change: the inclusion of the third party users in the audit report. Evidently, clients would be resistant to this change as it would limit their options.If a client discovers later on in the year a shortage of cash but did not mention a creditor in the audit report, creditors might not want to finance their activities solely on that basis. Furthermore, due to the importance and the quantity of users relying on the financial statements, enumerating all of them in the audit report would be impractical and unnecessary. Auditors need to remain diligent when conducting their work and limiting their responsibilities’ to a specific number of individuals would not benefit the public.We would not want another case like this one to enable an auditor to conduct a negligent audit without suffering the necessary repercussions. In conclusion, the accounting world is an ever evolving practice. New rules and regulation s are approved every year when loopholes are discovered and abused. The accounting profession has surely matured since the 1920s. Who knows what other changes will be made in the future. Maybe auditors will need to disclose a summary of all unadjusted misstatements or even need to create a different audit report for every different user.